To no one's surprise, Prime Minister Paul Martin failed to convince Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to rein in the vicious militiamen who are brutalizing the people of Darfur.

The attempt was honourable. But Martin's personal appeal last month was no more effective than British Prime Minister Tony Blair's visit to Khartoum in October, a string of Security Council resolutions, the African Union's efforts to implement a ceasefire and the desperate pleas of countless international aid workers.

Al-Bashir poses for the cameras, makes reassuring noises, then allows the violence to escalate.

"Chaos is looming as order is collapsing," warned United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan a few days ago. "There has been no indication of the government apprehending and bringing to justice Janjaweed (armed militia) leaders."

This got Ottawa University law professor, Errol Mendes, thinking. What can the world do to bring a rogue government into line? What tools does the international community have to enforce fundamental human rights?

Obviously there is armed intervention, but that isn't likely to happen anytime soon in Sudan. None of the major military powers is eager to send troops into a desolate expanse of sub-Saharan Africa.

Theoretically, there are economic sanctions, but Mendes holds out little hope there. Two members of the United Nations Security Council  China and Russia  have made it clear that they will veto any resolution that disrupts the flow of Sudan's oil.

Finally, there is moral suasion. But al-Bashir seems impervious to that.

"I kept looking for weak points in Sudan's position," Mendes said. "There had to be levers we could use against the Khartoum government."

He thinks he might have found one. It's not perfect. It's not easy to use. And it's not guaranteed to work.

But nothing else has.

Sudan is one of the world's most heavily indebted countries. It owes various creditors  the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the African Development Bank, the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development as well as individual countries and commercial lenders  a total of $24 billion (U.S.) of which $20 billion is in arrears.

Khartoum can't begin to meet its financial obligations. Even the country's considerable oil revenues are dwarfed by its external debt.

It could try to stiff its creditors, but it is already paying a high price for doing that. Almost no one will lend Sudan money. That means al-Bashir can't improve his country's rickety infrastructure, strengthen its economy or raise its standard of living.

This, says Mendes, is a prescription for rebellion.

It is also an opportunity for the international community to do some hard bargaining.

Mendes is proposing that Sudan be offered debt relief, with some very stringent conditions attached:

Until the atrocities in Darfur stop, the government doesn't get a cent.

It must allow international monitors into the region to verify that it is keeping its word.

It must demonstrate that none of the money freed up by the rescheduling of its debt payments is being used to buy military equipment or line the pockets of officials in Khartoum.

And it must negotiate in good faith with the rebel groups in Darfur.

Mendes admits it would be difficult to get all of the multilateral lending agencies, not to mention Sudan's individual creditors, to act in concert. And he acknowledges that enforcing the terms of the debt relief package would be a challenge.

"You'll have some skeptics saying it can't be done," he said. "But I think it could be a success story."

What is more, he thinks Martin should play a leading role. The Prime Minister is well regarded at the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, he set up and chaired the G20 finance ministers' club, he has been a vocal advocate of debt relief for struggling African countries and he has made Darfur a personal priority.

Canada does not hold a large share of Sudan's outstanding debt, only $11.4 million. But it does have the international stature to rally other countries, Mendes argues.

Late last month, he convinced Parliament's subcommittee on human rights and international development to endorse his proposal. It passed a motion calling on the federal government to "use all available means and channels to forge an agreement linking any assistance on the external debt of Sudan to real steps taken by the Khartoum government to disarm and dismantle the Janjaweed militias."

Now Mendes hopes to give the idea wider circulation. He cannot remain silent in the face of ethnic cleansing. He refuses to be stymied by the politics of oil, the shortcomings of the United Nations or the intransigence of the Sudanese government.

Mendes gives Martin credit for going to Khartoum. Now he is asking the Prime Minister to take the next step. Convert words into action. Show the kind of moral leadership that will make Canada a force for good in the world.

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